The government of Barbados has FINALLY issued a clarification statement on its failed plan to privatise the sugar industry.
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Government clears the air
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34 responses to “Government clears the air”
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New development path required
This article was written and submitted by Sir Errol Walrond, professor emeritus at the University of the West Indies and honorary consultant at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital.
The economic doctrine of expansion has brought the world joy for some individuals and countries, with the establishment of empires and their eventual dissolution by war over the spoils of the said economic doctrine of continuous expansion. To individuals, it has brought a few great wealth, some exceeding the net worth of many countries. For the majority, many are left scrambling to survive in a world where essentials such as food, shelter and basic health care are in the same economic space created for accumulating wealth.
Whenever an alternate doctrinal system has emerged of countries controlling individual wealth and a more equitable distribution of essentials such as health care and the availability of food and shelter, ideological wars, both hot and cold, have broken out.
Embedded conflict
Nevertheless, in the last two generations, both economic camps have adopted practices from each other, but are unable to admit it, and war, both hot and cold, is now an embedded part of their economies. These wars have driven both technological innovation as well as the destruction of the mind, body and spirit of many.
The problem for the world is the huge paradox that to keep expansion going, this favoured economic philosophy requires expansion of the population, its market and an affordable labour force. However, economic expansion produces a paradox for improvement in living conditions of the workforce not only enables them to buy the products of their labour, but encourages them to do more by limiting the size of families. Thus, the balance of needing more people for an ever-expanding economy and providing the people with enough incentive to conserve inevitably results in reducing the population.
Some countries respond to their population reduction by exploiting cheap workforce in other countries, as seen from slavery to the modern multinational corporation and poorly regulated migration from poor countries to rich ones.
Some countries have responded by trying to regulate everything by tight control of production by the state and have met with limited success. The limited success of the so-called socialist economies is that the state cannot afford an inherent human problem with corruption or the implacable opposition and sabotage from those countries with the capitalist doctrine of development by private corporations.
These two “messianic” doctrines of economic development behave with all of the characteristics of historic religious wars, and they come to blows directly or indirectly on the territories of less well-developed country acolytes. Such battles, articulated on their ideological economic development grounds, play out in the less developed countries by exploiting their resources.
It was refreshing to read a local economist recognise that the arrangements that are pursued with the capitalist doctrinal lending organisations never redound to the benefit of our small state, but there was also no stated intention to embrace the socialist development approaches.
We are, therefore, left standing in the economic rain, knocking on doors for shelter but never dare to unfurl the umbrella we are carrying, because when it was bought it was an accoutrement to be carried with the three-piece suit of our bankers.
We speak of CARICOM unity and development of economies of scale; we speak of enhancing our region’s tourism, yet we are suspicious of anyone from another CARICOM country who seek opportunities here, but welcome with red carpets those whose only aim is how to exploit us.
We rely on tourism but do not ask what attracts visitors to fly past Miami at greater expense to get here?
Instead, we see Miami as a tourist mecca, so let’s become Miami and build more hotels on the beaches. We live primarily in the western parishes but don’t need to see the beach on that coast. If you want to enjoy the sight of a beach you get in your car, or join an excursion and navigate the roads that have not been the best maintained to get to the East Coast where you see the sea, but swim in it at your peril.
Many of our political leaders have done us proud rhetorically at home and abroad. We have shown that as a region we have sons and daughters who are second to none, whether it be intellectually, in sports or in entertainment. Professor Lewis from St Lucia was awarded a Nobel Prize in Economics for his work on Developing Economies. I am fascinated that his contribution to economics is never mentioned in the public writings of the economists in the region.
Learn from history
Should we stop following every shiny string of beads that is offered to us and get to the basic development of our human capital from the womb to the tomb, or ashes, as the case may be? In such development, we should learn from history, our own as well as others. We should acknowledge that both political and religious doctrines are constructs of man and their societies to help them survive together, and that most of those doctrines see other societies as different and often as the enemy. We should not need enemies to survive or thrive. Let us acknowledge that knowledge, both scientific and philosophical, will change and sometimes be lost waiting to be discovered again. We should no longer be trying to find the lever that lifted huge blocks of stone to build the pyramids and ignore the fact that there might have been a simpler lost technology of casting the blocks on site.
Our lost development technology in Barbados may very well be savings; the savings that used to bring some interest when lodged in the bank or were not taxed when home improvements were made. Savings [such as the NISSS pension funds] that should not be raided by governmental decree for any purpose. Unfortunately, any such call for self-reliance is unlikely to find favour with the political and economic class who derive great benefit from the hierarchical system of dependency, the poor on them and they on the rich – local or foreign.
I recall a conversation many years ago with an official in the Central Bank who had just spoken against raising the minimum wage [from 50 cents an hour if I recall correctly], whilst at the same time there was an announcement in the press of improvements to the housing for the governor, including refurbishment of a swimming pool. His answer was simple. A lifestyle had to be maintained commensurate with the job and the money being spent on increasing the salary and home improvements for the governor was much less than an increase in the minimum wage would cost the Government. These insensitivities are like those shown by most major multinational corporations and when carried too far, inevitably lead to social unrest, and then governments who rely on the wealthy for their election/ bribery money have to choose.
Political parties choose but obscure their true intentions. The best operators contribute to both parties. On the other hand, the people divide themselves into yard fowls, expecting to capitalise on Government jobs, whilst others use elections to gather as much corn as can be shaken from candidates.
Hurricanes Beryl and Melissa should have given governments in the region and the people a massive wakeup call. We should no longer be hoping for financial help from the authors of global warming. We should also be building our own resilience. Economic growth can be achieved by building our homes to be resilient. This could be done in an individual/Government partnership, where professional expertise is offered by Government and finance is provided primarily by the owners of properties. Where governments are successful in soliciting funding for resilience preparedness, this could be disbursed to householders for resilience preparedness in a manner that would assist the least able proportionately more than the more able.
Source: Nation
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Who is the statement from BAMC quoting @ David?
Is it Minister Weir, or is from a Board or Manager at BAMC?
Seems a bit ‘hazy’ to Bushie… -
@Bush Tea
Officially appears to be issued by BAMC but we know this is a statement from government. Weir is the pawn.
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The issue here like most things is the ‘ignorance’ is an educated Bajan public.
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LOL
Given the most recent update to its members from the coop (which preceded this BAMC release), Bushie would have expected a much more robust position from government. Also expected that it would come from someone who was willing to publicly stand up to Browne, and refute the positions taken by him as president as coopenergy and of the two new companies.
This is quite pathetic in that regard.How come you have not yet shared that last coop update on BU?
It was dated 30 October.What a place!!
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@Bush Tea
The blogmaster is not aware of any 30th Oct press release.
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Are you serious Boss?!!
You mean that BU David don’t know everything about everything after all?
LOL
Wuh even stinking Bushie got a copy that fell off a sugar truck…
…and is here waiting for a coherent response from someone with authority and wid a name…
ha ha ha
Place TOO sweet!! -
The blogmaster is not so vain.
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OOPs
It was not a press release but an ‘update to members’. -
TANZANIA MASS GRAVES OF BLACKS FROM FRAUD ELECTION SLAUGHTER.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Samia Suluhu Hassan BURYING All The Possible Evidence. SAD!
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Anyone looking to buy this entity will need audited up to date financials. Are the audited financials for 2024 available for investor scrutiny?
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@John A
Isn’t this why the deal fell through according to Browne? Based on the statement the government seemed happy to cut a deal based on just the MOU. No wonder we can’t get audited financials for NISSS.
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@ David
And the next interested party will also fall through for the same reason.
Based on this one can’t help but ask has the entity as of today received the audited financials for 2024? If not how serious are they really interested in even selling it? Remember this matter started in 2023, so there was more than enough time to get audited accounts done by today the 9th November 2025.
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@John A
As we have discussed in this space many times, there is a culture of financial neglect.
[Auditors General Reports, pick 1,2 or 6]
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@ David
No financial institution or board of a public entity with shareholders, will buy this entity without current audited financial statements at the very least. I say very least cause if it were me, I would on receiving the financials then pick out the large assets listed and seek independent valuations on them as well. One needs to ensure that these assets represent the written down value vs market value, thereby ensuring that the net earnings/losses stated in the financials have in the accurate component of depreciation.
They got to get their act together before they come to the market again.
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@John A
This is one subject Enuff feels comfortable staying away. There is no credible explanation to be given, especially if NO comes in to mention Clearwater, it all over.
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@ David
NO is a man that deals with data and facts. Enuf and a few others here deal in party loyalty and playing to the faithfuls. Who you think an independent thinker will listen to? Nothing wrong with liking a party, but when you blinded to the facts and loyal at any cost to a party is where the problem starts.
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In addition to the obvious points made by John A, someone needs to make this make sense…
So wait…
– Government had a signed agreement with this coop to complete the transfer.
– Everyone knows that the coops have accumulated millions of dollars that are sitting in the banks at negative interest rates, so they would be interested in a GOOD investment…
-The coop is saying that all they required are financial statements, validation of assets… and clarification on changes made by government to the MOU……And the government calls off the deal ??? !!!
…and are now looking for alternative investors ???So are they looking for investors who will NOT want valuations?
…or who will NOT want to know what they are getting?
WTH!!
There MUST be more to this mortar than this shiite pestle…Where is Mascoll?
What became of his great revelation on brass tacks – about a packaging scam that diverted millions from BAMC? Has that been resolved?
Why is this whole thing so secretive?Government has to come up with a more sensible story…. REALLY!!
What a place!! -
Amateur hour.
As Bajans say, if you start wrong…..
This was all about unloading an SOE, all else followed, some not so logically.
So they take a non legally binding agreement, a MOU, and insert a clause pertaining to non disclosure, while an NDA IS A LEGALLY binding agreement. Sweet.
The viability had nothing to do with Sugar, but with electricity production.
But the GoB won political points by promising the employees 20% for free. You know how a Bajan love a freeness?
Meanwhile, there are two companies (ABC & BESCO) with no ownership (share issuance). Only in Buhbaydus.
So it would appear, the BAMC still owns 100%, minus a promise 20% will be given away. -
@ Bushie
Maybe that is why they frighten to present financials. If they are large amounts moving in or out of the corporate account, then the independent auditors will ask questions and SHOULD list this as a concern in the audit notes that come out in the financials.
Also as Northern mentioned if there is a LEGAL liability established that 20 percent of the company has been sold to or owed to others, then this SHOULD be honoured and settled by the current owners first then offer the 80% left for sale. Or deduct the value of the 20% from the sale and see if the new buyers would as a condition of the sale, honour this commitment.
It all boils down to what de ass wunna really legally selling here and what its worth?
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Perhaps it was all just a scam to fool the IMF?? LOL
Was it not a condition of a big IMF loan that BAMC had to be divested?
Well they got the money, ent it?In any case, our governments have NOT been about empowering BB Bajans …unless they are of the Malmoney or Bizzie ilk.
Can you imagine thousands of ordinary Bajans in cooperatives actually OWNING part of Brassbados?Murduh!!
What would Enuff and company sell off, or give away, to their foreign and local henchmen?The Cabinet probable realized their mistake and reverted to the standard disenfranchisement modus operandi…
What a place!! -
@ De community
I acclaim this writer a prolific author.
This is what transforming data into an engaging narrative for de audience is.
It simply kicks you guys in de face.
Salute 🫡 -
[…] has responded to today’s full page announcement by government (BAMC) on why it terminated the much publicised arrangement with CoopEnergy […]
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@Bushie
I was going to mention the IMF, but thought better.
Did Co-op Energy get played? -
@John A
Are you calling Enuff a yard fowl? That would be unkind?
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@ David
I would never do something so cruel David to such a fine and politically unbiased person like Enuf. I am shocked and deeply hurt that you would think such of a fine Christian gentleman like myself!
All I am saying is sometimes one’s loyalty is such that it can impair one’s clarity of thought when it comes to their opinion. Of course that is easy for me to say as I hold no political loyalty, so when the party does good I can acknowledge it, as is also the case when they do nonsense.
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@ David / JohnA
Perhaps someone could give a definition of a yard fowl and why they ain’t one -
Baje
This writer remains unconvinced. Certainly, there have been deaths, maybe a lot. However, what you have presented does not amount to a sintilla of evidence, far less proof – merely more conjecture.
There are simple and scientific ways to determine the number of deaths. But these are not them.
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WHETHER 1 DEATH OR THOUSANDS. THIS WAS A CLEAR FRAUDELENT ELECTION WITH INTERNET COUNTRYWIDE BLACKOUT FOR 5 DAYS AND SUPPOSEDLY WINNING WITH 98 PERCENT OF VOTES.
ON ELECTION DAY MOST BUSINESSES WERE CLOSED WITH MOST ELIGIBLE VOTERS STAYING HOME AND NOT VOTING YET THE FALSE GOVERNMENT SAYS 32 MILLION OF 37 MILLION REGISTERED VOTERS VOTED.
EVERY TANZANIAN I HAVE SPOKEN TO IN DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE COUNTRY ADMITTED THEY DIDN’T BELIEVE THEIR VOTE MATTERED AND CHOOSE NOT TO.
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TANZANIA’S HOSPITAL HORROR
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Over 300 Tanzanians, including minors, charged with treason after disputed elections
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Every dictator sooner rather than later than later always get their day of reckoning. Melissa as a storm despite its violence came to an end.
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This is the most corrupted government in the history of Barbados and every cent that is stolen will be eventually recovered at some time in the future. All of a sudden bribe taking is off the charts…..Michael Lashley has shown Dwight, Santiago and Duguid how to use off the books financing to make a little extra money
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SAMIA’S Son in trouble over KILLINGS in Tanzania ; INSIDER spills the beans
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